INCIDENCE RATE OF FALLS IN AN AGED POPULATION IN NORTHERN FINLAND

The total elderly population aged 70 years or over living in five rura l districts in northern Finland, 1159 persons in all, were monitored b y 'phone prospectively for 1 year, all falls being recorded separately for those living at home and in institutions. Of those living at home , 30% fell at least once during the year, 19% just once, this proporti on not depending on age or sex. The home-dwelling men and women experi enced 368/1000 PY and 611/1000 PY falls, respectively, the incidences tending to increase with advancing age. The men in institutions experi enced 2021 falls/1000 PY and the women 1423/1000 PY, without clear age dependence. The home-dwelling women had a greater risk of falling rep eatedly than the men, but the sex differences disappeared with advanci ng age. The fails among home-dwellers were concentrated in the day-tim e, whereas no variation with time of day was found in the institutions . Falls are common in the elderly, but their incidence and certain cha racteristics differ considerably between the home-dwellers and those l iving in institutions.